Goal: Restore funding to the national youth literacy program Reading is Fundamental

What started with a single tutor and her small act of allowing her students to pick and keep their own books nearly four decades ago has grown into one of the largest youth book-donating services of today’s world: Reading is Fundamental. The philosophy behind Reading is Fundamental (RIF) is simple: by donating books and allowing children to pick and choose their own, the joys of reading, education, and inspiration can be founded at a very young age. Not only does this greatly increase an individual child’s desire to read and to learn, it affords them a much higher chance of succeeding as they grow older.

RIF’s main demographic is underprivileged children ages 1-8 but their network of over 400,000 volunteers (which includes teachers, parents, and community workers) allows them to donate books and provide other literacy resources to schools, homeless shelters, and community youth centers worldwide. According to RIF statistics, nearly two-thirds of low-income families in the United States alone own few to no books. RIF wants to change that.

Sadly, securing the funding to make this vision a reality hasn’t been an easy journey for RIF. Despite the generous financial support of various corporations, community organizations, and countless individual supporters, RIF is still struggling to keep up with the worldwide need for books and literacy programs. The new budget program that was introduced by the Obama administration in 2010 effectively eliminated all government funding support for RIF, making its mission even harder to reach.

Please help support RIF by signing this petition letter and urging Congress to reinstate much needed funding for the program.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear members of Congress,

While the opportunities for success within the U.S. continue to grow annually, many non-profit organizations that are in desperate need of government funding are being left out in the cold. One such organization is the Reading is Fundamental organization which aims to provide free books and literacy programs to children worldwide.

The government budget cuts that were introduced by the Obama administration in 2010 effectively ended all government funding support for RIF, leaving it unable to support the nearly 40,000 children worldwide that it could otherwise have helped. As we enter into the year 2013, please take the time to reconsider our government’s financial priorities in regards to non-profit spending. The world needs more books, not more bombs.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Sign the Petition

First Name*

Last Name*

Email*

Address

Street AddressCityState / Province / RegionZIP / Postal CodeCountry

Share on Facebook

Only your name will be displayed. By signing, you accept our terms and may receive updates on this and related causes.